Bedroom Conversations
by Gamma Orionis
Summary: Druella tries to speak to Abraxas about a matter of great importance. She has little success. Written for Lady Phoenix Fire Rose's Scenery Competition and Lolaaaa's Harry Potter Fanfiction Festival on the HPFC forum.


Author's Notes: Written for Lady Phoenix Fire Rose's Scenery Competition with the scene "Rain pounded against the windows, coming down in relentless sheets of water from the blackened sky. Just barely heard over the rain was the terrible howling of the wind."

Also for the Rare Pair One Shot portion of Lolaaaa's Harry Potter Fanfiction Festival, with the prompts _Spiral, Down, _and_ Crush_.

Note that this story portrays viewpoints that I do not condone.

Enjoy!

)O(

Rain pounded against the windows, coming down in relentless sheets of water from the blackened sky. Just barely heard over the rain was the terrible howling of the wind.

Inside Black Manor, the only light was the lamp that burned in Druella Black's bedroom.

The rest of the manor was dark, but a point of golden light shone in that window. From outside, one could have seen figures, illuminated by the lamplight but blurred by the sheets of rain, moving against the window. From outside, one might have looked male and one female, but it would not have been easy to tell. From outside, one could not have heard the whispered conversation that was taking place inside the bedroom.

"We can't, Abraxas," Druella hissed, slapping away his hands as he tried to draw her to him, tried to embrace her as he had done before and never been stopped from doing. "I have told you this over and over again tonight – Cygnus already suspects me, and I can't give him any more reason to!"

"Don't stop me, Druella…" He ran one hand up her neck, pulling a pin from her long, blonde hair and letting it tumble down over her shoulders. Druella tried not to look at him while he curled a lock of it around his finger. His breath was warm on her cheek when he whispered, "You don't really want me to leave you…"

"I do, Abraxas," she told him, but her voice came out weak and breathy, and his other hand was stroking her back, pulling her gently towards him.

"No, you don't…"

"But I do."

"You wouldn't send me out in the rain, would you, Dru?" He leaned down slightly, catching her earlobes between his teeth and kissing it softly. "That would be terribly rude, you know…"

"I don't care, Abraxas… please stop…" She put one hand on his chest, pushing him back slightly.

"What's come over you, Dru?" he asked, a small frown creasing his handsome face. "You never used to be this way… remember Italy?" He reached for her again, and Druella did not push him away again, though she turned to stare out the window at the sheets of rain pounding down outside.

Yes, she remembered Italy.

She remembered being there with Abraxas – Cygnus back in England – giving in to her desires and how _beautiful_ it had been.

"That was different," she whispered. "In Italy… I was foolish, Abraxas. I can't do it again…"

"Cygnus will never know!" He twined his arms around her waist, trying to lay another kiss on her mouth but catching only her cheek as she turned her head. "You aren't afraid that it's a _sin_, are you, Dru?"

"No! You know me better, I am not afraid of sinning." She pulled herself out of his arms and knelt upon the window seat, pressing one palm against the glass and watching as lightning cracked through the sky.

"Then…" He put his arms about her waist, pressing two hands against her belly and drawing her close so that her back was pressed against his chest. "If you are not afraid of Divine retribution, and you do not have reason to fear your husband…"

She gazed out the window, not looking back at him, even as his hands wandered over her body, cupping her breasts gently and stroking the curve of her hip. His touch was light, gentle but sure, so different from Cygnus's clumsy hands…

"Come to bed, Dru," he murmured, lifting her fair hair and laying a kiss upon the back of her neck. "There is no reason to feel guilt for this… love is not a feeling that should ever be apologized for – you know as well as any…"

Druella said nothing and responded not at all, even as he dragged his finger across her back in a delicate spiral pattern, like he was drawing a design upon her skin. She wanted to desperately – she wanted to turn and drape herself in his arms, let him carry her to her bed and have her there, wanted to kiss him and say how she loved him…

"Please, Dru…"

"Abraxas."

She turned around, but not to fall into his embrace and melt and say how dearly she loved him. No, none of that. She closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them again, trying to hold back tears.

"I can't sleep with you again," she said, "because– because things are bad enough as they are…"

"Surely if things are bad, then I can make you happy again–"

"_No!_" Druella's voice rose to an almost hysterical tone. "No, Abraxas, you don't understand! You don't _understand_ how things have gone wrong – and if you'll only let me _talk_ for a moment, I can tell you!"

He said nothing, and for a moment, the only sounds were the rain and the wind outside, then, at last, Abraxas asked, in an uncharacteristically gentle voice, "What's wrong, then, Dru?"

"I'm–"

Her voice broke and she buried her face in her hands, her body trembling as she tried to draw enough breath into her lungs to tell her lover what _was_ wrong. She lifted her head to look at him desperately, and he sank down upon the bed, looking at her.

"Please, Dru… tell me…" he whispered, still in that eerily soft voice.

_Perhaps he has some idea…_

Druella wiped the tears that were streaming down her cheeks and tried to calm herself and steady her voice.

"Abraxas…" she whispered, "I'm… I'm–"

"You're _what_, Dru?" he asked, leaning forward and watching her intently.

"I'm… I'm with…" Her throat tightened and she just barely managed to whisper, "I'm with _child_, Abraxas."

Blood drained from his already pale face. He moved backwards, staring at her with something akin to terror, and Druella bit her lip hard. _She should have known – now he would leave her, and she'd be all alone and have no one except Cygnus…_

"By… me?" he whispered.

She nodded. "Cygnus and I haven't been together for months… it… it has to be yours…"

He swore softly, standing up and turning away from her. Druella bit down on her lips to stop herself from begging him to tell her what he was thinking…

"What are you going to do?" Abraxas asked, and his voice had gone as cold as the bitter wind outside.

"M- me? What am _I_ going to do? What are _you_ going to do?"

"I'm not the one who's pregnant," said Abraxas, not even looking at her.

Druella felt as though her heart had been torn out of her breast. She clutched her belly with one hand and pressed the other over her chest, the breath very nearly knocked out of her from sheer _shock_ that he would talk to her like that.

"You _got_ me pregnant, Abraxas!"

"You got yourself pregnant. So tell me, what are you going to do?"

She struggled to hold back fresh tears. "Abraxas… how can you… how can you even _talk_ like that?"

He didn't respond. He was heading for the door already, and Druella leapt up, catching his arm. "Abraxas! I'm carrying your _child!_ You- you must have _something_ to say about it!"

"I haven't," he said coldly. He pulled out of her grip, and then he swept out of her room, slamming the door behind him.

Druella let out a soft cry of despair, and fell back upon her bed, in tears.

She had hoped – _stupidly_, of course, but hoped nonetheless – that Abraxas would act the hero and sweep her off her feet, promise to take her away from Cygnus and marry her, and then she and he and her child by him could live together, far away from this place…

Abraxas could not have crushed her hopes any more thoroughly.

)O(

_Fin_


End file.
